Page:Ranjit Singh (Griffin).djvu/166

160 know of his character, which was singularly averse to deeds of violence except in fair fight; nor had he any respect for female virtue or fidelity. Mahtab Kour was probably shut up in a fortress, as an inconvenient intriguer, where she shortly afterwards died.

The yoke of the mother-in-law, Sada Kour, was far more difficult to shake off; and the young chief did not at first feel strong enough to attempt it. She had given the boy no education, and had encouraged him in all the sensual pleasures which are too often used by interested guardians in India to weaken the character and health of youthful princes whose power they desire to usurp or retain. Every day we see similar intrigues in the Feudatory States, with the same result. Such intrigues severely test the tact and courage of the British Resident, and, in the opinion of the author, are sometimes treated too timorously by the Indian Foreign Office.

Ranjít Singh was possessed, however, of an intellect which indulgence could not permanently cloud, and of a powerful physique which withstood for many years his habitual excesses. A special opportunity for distinction arose when Sháh Zemán, the grandson of India's frequent invader Ahmad Sháh, marched southwards to recover, if possible, his ancestor's lost provinces. In the year 1793 Zemán had succeeded Timúr on the throne, and two years later he invaded the Punjab, advancing no further south than the Jehlam river. But in 1797 and the following year he was more successful, and occupied Lahore without any